TEHRAN – The natural resources and watershed management week will be held from February 29 to March 4 with the theme “investment for sustainable development”.

Natural resources are national and intergenerational assets. Forests, pastures, water resources, and soil are the main sources for sustainable production in different sectors, including agriculture, animal husbandry, industry, and tourism, IRIB quoted Tarahom Behzad, an official with the Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization, as saying.

Investing in sustainable management of natural resources is the only way to ensure sustainable production, balanced development, and to protect the rights of the future generation, the official noted.

Referring to climate challenges, he said that the week provides a great opportunity to identify the challenges and promote scientific approaches in natural resources management.

The official went on to highlight the role of public participation in the preservation of natural resources, saying that people, nongovernmental organizations, and the media’s involvement play a pivotal role in achieving the desired goals.

Previous measures

According to the head of Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization, Ali Teymouri, more than 250 natural resources projects were inaugurated during the Government Week, held from August 24 to 30, 2025.

“More than 5,847 trillion rials (about 3.656 million dollars) has been allocated to these projects,” ISNA quoted Teymouri as saying.

These projects cover various sectors such as watershed management and conservation, seedling production, forests, pastures, and deserts, the official added.

Underlining the crucial role of the country’s natural resources and watershed management projects in sustainable land management, biosecurity, and reverse migration, Teymouri said the main objectives of these projects are to reduce soil erosion, control sediment, strengthen groundwater resources,  safeguard and enhance the country’s vegetation, reduce dust, and increase green space per capita.

Launching forest reserve building and wildlife protection station, equipping existing plant nurseries, completing the construction of fire station, distributing solar water heating systems to reduce firewood consumption, constructing semi-circular bund (a low, semi-circular embankment built on a gentle slope to harvest rainwater, prevent soil erosion) and earth dams, restoring and improving pastures, as well as conducting flood spreading operations are among other measures of the organization.

In June 2025, Teymouri said the national budget bill for watershed management in the current Iranian calendar year (March 2025-March 2026) is fifteenfold the budget for its preceding year.

Implementing watershed and aquifer management projects can lead to rainfall penetration into the land or infiltration, strong vegetation cover, reduced soil erosion, and improved land dynamics, ISNA quoted Ali Teymouri as saying.

Referring to the drop in rainfall and the rise in global temperature, which can contribute to sand and dust storms, the official said that although the Ministry of Energy focuses on governance in water resources management, from the Natural Resources and Watershed Management Organization’s perspective, territorial sovereignty needs to be considered.

Natural resources, vegetation, biodiversity, fauna, soil, and even air must be seen as an interconnected whole. If the rate of water evaporation is ignored, decision-making based on the amount of water remaining cannot be efficient.

Out of some 400 billion cubic meters of annual rainfall, with 280 billion cubic meters evaporating, only 110 to 120 billion cubic meters of manageable water remains. According to the Ministry of Energy, this year the figure has dropped to 66 billion cubic meters, indicating a 20 to 30 percent decrease compared to its preceding year, Teymouri stressed.

If just 10 percent of the water that evaporates is managed through watershed and aquifer management methods, many positive changes will be brought about.

MT/MG